Ürgüp

Ürgüp is the largest of the Cappadocian towns and the traditional centre of the region before Göreme's backpacker trade shifted the balance. Its old quarter climbs a hillside in cut stone - carved mansions from the nineteenth century, many now hotels, on stepped lanes below a rock outcrop honeycombed with old dwellings and topped by the Temenni hill viewpoint and a Seljuk tomb. The other tradition is wine. The volcanic soil and the local Emir and Kalecik Karası grapes have supported viticulture here since antiquity, cellars are cut into the tuff because it holds a steady temperature, and several producers run tasting rooms in the town - Turasan and Kocabağ among the long-established. The town also has a working market, a small museum and enough restaurants to make it a comfortable base. Being a few kilometres from Göreme, it takes the same day trips with rather less of the crowd.

History

The site of Ürgüp, the Greek Prokopi, was probably first settled in Hittite times, though nothing of that remains; a few tombs show Roman occupation, the Church of St Procopius gave the town its old name, and in Byzantine times it was known as Osiana. The Seljuk era left the hexagonal Six Gates tomb of a military commander in the centre, and a symbolic tomb of 1863 on Temenni Hill honours the Seljuk ruler Kılıç Arslan IV, killed here. In late Ottoman times the town had a mixed population of Turks and Christians, with 19,880 Muslims, 3,134 Greeks and 16 Armenians counted in the district in the census of 1881-1893, and most of its grand stone houses, many now hotels, date from that period (Wikipedia, Ürgüp).

What to look for

• The stone quarter - carved mansions on the old hillside.
• The rock cellars - wine stored in cut tuff chambers.
• Temenni hill - the viewpoint and Seljuk tomb above town.
• The tasting rooms - Emir and Kalecik Karası from local producers.

When to go

April to June and September to November; the grape harvest in September and October is the liveliest season. Winter is cold but the cave hotels are warm.

Good to know

Turkish wine carries heavy taxation and is not cheap. The old quarter is steep and stepped. It is less atmospheric than Göreme's valleys but has more of a working-town feel, which some prefer and some do not.

Nearby

Göreme is eight kilometres west; Mustafapaşa and Ortahisar are minutes away.

Key facts